Anticipated regret and respondent uncertainty in assessing public preferences for air pollution treatment policies: A choice experiment

Abstract

Compared with the traditional utility maximization decision mechanism in choice experiments, the role of anticipated regret in choosing air pollution treatment policies has received limited attention, especially when respondent uncertainty is considered. This study explores the importance of the regret mechanism compared with the traditional utility mechanism while accounting for respondent uncertainty. The preference characteristics between the two classes of respondents who follow different decision mechanisms are examined. Moreover, the impact of neglecting respondent uncertainty on the assessment of public preferences and willingness to pay is analyzed. Results suggest that a regret-based behavioral framework is more appropriate for explaining the public's choice of air pollution treatment policies compared to a traditional utility-based framework. Anticipated regret is the main driver influencing the public's choice behavior. There is obvious heterogeneity in the preferences for air pollution treatment between the two classes of respondents who follow different decision mechanisms. Notably, ignoring respondent uncertainty leads to distortions in the willingness-to-pay estimates of attributes.